


A long Way through the Night

by TheBlackSwanOfTheFamily



Category: Rise of the Guardians (2012)
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, F/M, Fluff, Gen, Original Character(s), Sad with a Happy Ending, Slow Burn, Temporary Character Death, curse words
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-21
Updated: 2020-06-04
Packaged: 2021-02-28 21:27:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 6,148
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23243992
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheBlackSwanOfTheFamily/pseuds/TheBlackSwanOfTheFamily
Summary: A new hazard unfolds and the Guardians have to face it with the help if a new companion.The past begins to matter more for Bunnymund and he has to tell an old story of lost and pain.
Relationships: E. Aster Bunnymund/Original Character(s)
Kudos: 4





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> This story is in progress for a while and maybe I have to change tags, ratings or something else.  
> English is not my first language so, please have mercy on me.  
> Enjoy and have fun.

It was a quiet afternoon at the pole.  
The Yetis went about their chores as they always did. Even the Elfs were working on their own project, as crazy as it might be. Santa Claus was captured by his newest task of building a roller coaster out of ice.

In the castle of the Tooth Fairy the regular chaotic bustle took place.  
The humming of the little fairies was present as always. Tooth distributed their tasks calmly to them.

For the Sandman it was working time in another hemisphere. He created hummingbirds, dolphins, owls, and little cute pixies out of his golden sleep sand.  
Nothing could disturb him in his work.

Jack Forst, on the other hand, was out in the open and totally in his element. For the kids of this town was the time in the afternoon more than free time from school, it was so much more, it was playtime.  
Jack sped through the air like a rocket, the laughter of the children right behind him.

Deep in his warren was the Easter Bunny, likewise working.  
His holiday was over for quite a while and now he devoted himself entirely to his plants.  
The silence around him was only interrupted by the splash of the color flow.

In the darkness of his hiding place, the bogeyman brooded over his plans. He could hear the whispers in the blackness around him.  
The fearlings were restless.  
Like their master, they waited a long time for action, but the time wasn't ready for it yet.  
His minions could try to push as long as they wanted to, this time Pitch would not rush into motion.  
This time he had to be successful and he knew he only could defeat his enemies with a well thought out plan.  
His plan was as simple as it was complicated so he had to calculate every step and move of it.  
He had to gather information, power, and skills.  
And he had to know his Opponent. Their weaknesses, shortcomings and most importantly their doubts.  
As time passed his plot began to become clearer.  
He smiled in the shadows of his den.  
It was the dark and shady smile of someone who can see the life of their enemies falling apart...

None of the Guardian noticed the change that happened.  
It was so quiet, so imperceptible like the whistling of a butterfly, but it would show an effect very soon.

Only the man in the moon was aware of the upcoming events. He had been quiet for a while. Now that things started to unfold he had to make his move...


	2. Meetings, Tea and the moon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Guardians have a meeting, Tea hour with pie and the man in the moon appears unexpectedly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Then adventure slowly begins.

Once a month there was a meeting now.   
Since the events that made Jack Frost a Guardian a lot had happened.  
The Guardian of joy had seen that his fellow guardians were not very sociable when it came to contact with other spirits or all other beings in general.   
He made it his task to change that.  
Which was easier said than done.  
Not that his friends would have afforded. Not really.   
They were hesitant, yes, but not against it.  
Well, except for Bunny, he was a die-hard hermit and left his home rarely outside of his holiday.  
Jack had asked nicely and encouraged him to go outside more often, but get a hard no out of it.  
He discussed and fight verbally and only gathered an eye roll.  
At last, he threatened to frost the warren all over and was finally successful.  
Bunny came to the meetings but was grumpy as always.  
They tended to switch location and et the end settled on the pole because it had the best size and comfort for all of them.  
The fact that the Yetis provided well-tasting food didn't hurt either.  
On this day they sat together, chatted with another, had tea and eat a nice banana cream pie.  
For a little while, Tooth was opposed, because of the amount of sugar, that could hurt their teeth, but at the end, even she had to agree that the Yetis had done really good work with it.  
At the moment there was not really much to do for most of them.  
Easter was long done for this year and Christmas not in sight yet,  
the daily duties were finished for the time being and it was space to rest.  
Or so they thought.  
As the moons silver light brightened the room all guardians were confused.   
The man in the very rarely showed his face, even at times of danger.  
At the moment, everything seems to be pretty peaceful and none of them had even seen a shred of Pitch Blacks shadowy cloak.  
There were no signs of a shady plot against them or the children of the world.  
Actually, Pitch has been awfully quiet in the past few years.  
In retrospect seemed all this very suspicious.  
The moonlight shimmered brightly to the choosing circle.  
And all guardians understand the message:  
~ There is a new threat~  
~ There will be a new guardian ~

A new guardian...   
That was unexpected news.  
Jack had been the first new arrival in centuries.   
Now, not even half a decade later, the man in the moon picked another newbie.  
None of them had seen this coming.  
It was a riddle to them, why and how it had come to this.  
Until now they all believed that it had been peaceful.  
What should they do after the new guardian was chosen?  
Seeking out Pitch? Looking out for a new foe?   
There were many possibilities.  
Hopefully, the man in the moon would give them some answers.  
Unfortunately for them MiM was usually not very informative.  
It often ended in guesswork.  
The crystalline orb came out of its bracket and slipped in place.  
Again Tooth was the first to ask.  
"Oh, my, who do you guys think will be the new guardian this time?"  
A short silence, then Jack answered.  
" It could be everyone. Wow, maybe it will be someone really cool. "  
" Yeah, 'cause last time we were so lucky with that..." Bunny said with an eye roll.  
" Oh I am very cool " Jack countered amused " literally. "  
" Who would you consider > cool< then, mate? " Bunny asked slightly annoyed.  
" A jinn maybe ."  
" To tricky, dude! And they are more hot types. All fire and smoke. " the Pooka object.  
" Well ... ", Jack considered for a moment, then he grinned a thieving grin. " how about a Panoti? " he asked innocently.  
" Why in the bloody world would you even suggest that? That's nuts! " Bunny commented in disbelief.  
" It is not nuts. One of them could listen around. Maybe they hear news here and there. With ears like this they just have to get something. I mean, we don't have someone with ears so big that they could hear about a new threat... Oh, wait... "  
Jack began to giggle and ducked out of Bunny's reach.  
To avoid arguing Tooth said " I'm really excited. Let's see who Manny chooses. "  
The orb lit up and immersed the room in bright light.   
The glow subsided and the outlines of a person were discovered.  
Slowly the picture became clear and the guardian could see their newest member.  
The spirit was female, with black hair to her waist.  
The hologram showed her emotionless pictures to them.  
A short silence came into being, then...  
" You have to be kidding me! ", Bunny appeared shocked and angry.  
His fellow guardian looked at him in confusion.   
The sudden outbreak was unexpected.  
" What's with the yelling? That's Asha. I heard of her. She lives in India, right?! " North said with raised eyebrows.   
" Yeah, what's up with you? ", Jack asked. " I met her once or twice. I know you are introverted, but it's not that bad to meet new people."  
" Is there a problem? " Tooth looked worried.  
Bunny"s ears twitched and the said defensive, " What?! No, there's no problem... I ... ähm ... was just surprised. Met her once. It was not a blast. " He grumbled the last part.  
" Well, ok then..." North didn't sound very convinced but didn't go into it any further.  
" So, what do we do now, Manny? You gave us a new companion. Now, where is the threat, old friend? " he said with much more enthusiasm.  
To his complete surprise, MiM was gone. In the short time, the guardian had their exchange the man in the moon had left the conversation without any answers.  
All attempts to get him to come back was fruitless...  
" Oh goodness .... What do we do now? " Tooth asked the group worried.   
Even Sandy seemed in distress about the current situation.  
The golden man, who was normally so calm, looked sad. A question mark flows over his head.  
Jack twisted his staff around.  
" Well, why not do first things first? Let's go see Asha. Maybe she has a clue what's going on. " he said and stretched.  
They agreed on this plan of action and disagreed about the method of transportation. While this was nothing new it seemed that Bunny, who had over time become more and more comfortable with the sled was buying time. He had no reason to refuse to ride in the sled as he had many times now. At the end of an exhaustive discussion Tooth and Jack decided to take matters into their own hands. They grabbed the stubborn rabbit on both sides and put him in the sled. Bunny grumbled something to himself, that they couldn't understand but he stopped arguing and fell silent all the way long.   
Their path led them over Mongolia and China, well it would have, hadn't been for North's Snow Globe.   
There was only one problem: where was Asha right now... Did she have her own lair? Was she a nomad?  
North could say > India <, but there was no big gain. India was a big country, the search would belong...  
" So ... has someone a good idea what to do now, " North asked.  
They fell silent for a moment, then Jack shrugged.  
" We could look where we saw her previously...?!   
Maybe it's a dumb idea, but I don't know what else to do " he said.  
" No, no you do have point, " North answered.   
" We have no other option, " Tooth said, " Let's do this ".  
Bunny was silent and it seemed like he was uncomfortable, but he didn't object.  
With the agreement of all of them, they started their search at a point where jack saw the new guardian first.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In this chapter, I introduced a new Guardian.  
> Asha is an OC I made a while ago, but I'm still working on her.


	3. A Lake of Silence

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Guardians searching for their new member and meet her at a silent place.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, it seems that all my chapters are quite short at the moment. I hope I get them longer time by time.

They're first tried to find Asha on the southwest coast of the country. Jack claimed he saw her there many years ago. The city had changed a lot since then and there was not really a good point to start with.  
Bunny was grumpy all the time.   
He proclaimed that this was a waste of time and they would never find everyone in here.  
Sadly, they all had to agree with that.  
Jack's next clue was a mountain in the North.   
It was not a surprise that again there was no sign of the soon to be guardian and Jack started to really doubt his idea.  
" It's like I said. There is nothing here, dude! Did you think the woman would just sitting on top of a mountain and do what, ... meditation? ", Bunny grumbled annoyed.  
" Well, ok, then ", Jack returned angrily.  
" Tell us where you saw her and we go there. Maybe you will be luckier than I am. "  
" Fine. But don't get your hopes up. It was hundreds of years ago. ", the Pooka said and they head in the direction.  
" I hope so much she isn't there.", Jack tumbled to himself.  
The next location was nearly in the middle of the country.   
It was a slightly oval lake with water that appeart to bee green or maybe turquoise.   
The earth was flat around the lake and little, deep green, bushes and shrubs grew there.   
To their surprise, they saw a lot of Temples around there.   
It was quite and peaceful and there was nobody near them.  
It looked like a place for meditation and inner peace.  
" This place changed not much. Well, there where less temple I guess ". Bunny said.  
They walked to the nearest building.  
It was a temple made out of gray stones in different sizes and shapes.  
Flowers, columns and domes stretched towards the blue sky.  
There were no clouds and the sun was bright   
From the stairs of the building they could overlook the lake.  
Even if there had been people around they would, of course, not been seen, that was part of the existence as a spirit. Maybe some children, that were believers, could but there were none.  
This place was a monument of peace and silence, a postcard picture for people who were searching for their inner self to evolve.  
Bunny felt uncomfortable, as if he had a look on his back.  
As if eyes were following them.  
He turned and glanced around.  
There where nothing except the stones, who was warmed by the sun.  
Snickering echoed and broke the silence.  
The Guardian looked around in search of the source of the sound.  
A person appeared from behind the biggest dome on top of the temple.  
" Well, hello there! Isn't that a nice surprise. You are really a sight for my sore eyes. "  
The person jumped, from the impressive high, and landed right in front of them. A smug smile on the lips, she made a whistling sound.  
" What brings the forces of all good, happy and sunshine to my old and dusty lair? How do I deserve the honor of your presence? "  
' Well, that was quite the speech ', Jack thought.  
He remembered Asha as quite eloquent ... and sarcastic.  
North laughed thundering and smiled brightly.  
" Hah, hello to you too, friend. So glad we finally found you. We looked everywhere. '  
" Everywhere? " the other spirit asked unimpressed.  
" Well, not quite," North shrugged, " but we searched a few places.   
However, we are here to bring great news to you." He grinned.  
" Is that so? How comes? " Asha rolled her gold-colored eyes at him.  
" Oh yes, that we do! "  
North proclaimed proudly.  
The other guardian knew him well enough to know that he liked to hear his own voice at times like this.  
He liked great speeches.  
Tooth and Sandy smiled dutifully.  
Jack grinned. He knew this situation very well. He had lived it a few years ago. Bunny was quite. It appeared that he tried to be in the background as well as he could, what was really difficult, for an over 6 inches tall Rabbit.  
With proudly swollen chest, North thundered " We are here to tell you, that you are choosen to be a Guardian. "  
Asha frowned at him but remained silent.  
North grinned again and looked at her expectant.  
Again she remained silent.  
North eyes flipped from Sandy to Tooth and then to Jack.  
He whispered from the corner of his mouth, " Why isn't she saying anything? " he mumbled.  
" Shock? " Jack guessed and shrugged.  
" Sheer, absolute disinterest?! ", Bunny mumbled almost silently.  
" No, It's not quite that. ", Asha commented drily in North direction.  
" What's the matter then?" Tooth asked worried.  
She and Sandy had remained silent, Tooth because she was confused and worried and Sandy because he couldn't help it.  
" Look, guys, " Asha said, " I'm not interested in being a member of your club. I think it's all nice and right what you are doing, but I don't care to be part of it. I'm not qualified. "  
" That's what I was saying..." Jack mumbled to himself.  
North was picking up on Jack's quiet soliloquy and said, " Our boy Jack here, said the exact same thing as he was chosen a few years ago. Didn't think he would want to be a Guardian, right?! Said 'That's not for me' and all stuff like this, but look at him now. "   
North patted him on the back and smiled proudly.  
Asha looked very unimpressed.  
" Yeah, that's a story of success right there, but as I said I don't want a membership. Thank you all for coming, appreciated it and all that politely stuff people say to say goodbye. I hope you find your six-wheel very soon. ", she said rapidly, bowed and tried to get them away.  
" Wait, wait, wait, " North said helpless. " What's happening here? "  
" What's happening is that little miss petunia here wants us to get lost. ", Bunny said with his ears covered.  
" It talks. " Asha said, eye big with faked awe.   
" I thought a cat got your tongue, master hare. "   
Bunny straightened to his full size.  
" Oh, spare me that. You don't want to be one of us?! That's alright! Nobody is forcing you. We gotta go and leave you alone at your new age temple. " he told her.  
They glared at each other, but before the argument could continue, North interfered.  
" Please come down you two. There is no need for fighting . ", he said soothingly.  
Asha looked at him in annoyance.  
" I don't know what more I could tell you. I am not suitable for this job. I have other things to do. "  
" Oh yeah, 'cause there are so many things to do here. Yoga, meditation or even zen gardening." Bunny snickered.  
" Wait, you do gardening all the time. Since when is something wrong with that? " Jack asked slightly confused and a little amused by the guardian of hope.  
" That's not the point. " Bunny hissed at him.  
" All right, all right, " North said, "let's continue. "  
" No need to continue. " tossed in  
North ignored her and continued anyway.   
" You are saying that you're not good suited to be a guardian, but that can not be true. The man in the moon chose you. He never makes a mistake in this kind of matter. "  
" He has this time! " Asha insisted.  
" Why are you so sure about that? " Tooth asked.  
Asha sighed. " Ok, I'll show you. I don't like to do that, but otherwise, you are not going to leave me alone. "  
She signed again and started to open the buttons of her shirt.  
" Ähm ..." Jack said perplexed.  
" What the bloody hell are you doing?" Bunny asked slightly blushing.  
" Guys, shut up and look," Asha said annoyed with them.  
Underneath her purple shirt, right in the middle of her chest where a dark crack. It was spreading in thin lines of her chest. It didn't appear to be a wound, instead, it looked like someone had drawn on her skin.  
The guardians were bewildered and shocked.  
" Goodness." Tooth said breathless.  
" What is this? "

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really hope the introduction of Asha was a good one. I'm a little sorry for the cliffhanger but I hope it makes the story more. exciting


	4. We agree to disagree and finding a solution.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A heated discussion takes place and Asha has to decide her future.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, it's been so long. I don't have an upload schedule for my stories   
> Sometimes it's hard for me to get the work done. Please bear it with me.

None of the guardians had ever seen something like the rip on the chest of the other spirit.  
The black lines looked a little like a tattoo, but it was absolutely clear that it wasn't one.  
" This is a rift of darkness," answered Asha Tooths question.  
" I have it as long as I can remember. I don't know where I got it from. "  
" Does it hurt you?" Bunny sounded worried.   
His anger was clearly forgotten.  
He got a little closer to her and looked in distress at the rift.  
" Luckily it does not hurt or something like that. It gets bigger or smaller from time to time. Sometimes there ate more lines and another time fewer.   
I don't really know why or how it works. " Asha answered slightly bewildered at his concern.  
" Oh Goodness. It looks awful. " Tooth said.   
A moment later she gasped.   
" My Gosh, I didn't want to be offensive. I'm so sorry, " she said quickly.  
"It's not a problem. I get it. "   
Asha sighed.   
"It's not a pretty sight.   
I'm not dressed like this because I like stand-up collars. "  
Tooth looked unhappy but didn't say anything more.  
Jack had the nagging feeling that he was missing something but he couldn't put a finger on it.  
" It was always there? " North asked upset.   
Sandy looked worried too and hung his head.   
He was a gentle soul and hate it when someone was hurt, physically, or mentally.  
" Yeah, not a big deal.   
I got used to it. " Asha answered and shrugged.   
She made her voice sound carefree, but her eyes told a different story. She looked upset but tried to hide it.  
" No! ", Bunny contend and she shrank back at the thundering tone of his voice.  
" It is a big deal!  
I have never seen anything like this. You look like one of these expensive porcelain dolls after it fell on the ground. " he said heatedly.  
' Well, he got talent in saying things that sound so wrong, even if he means well ... ' Jack thought and rolled his eyes.  
" Thanks. That's very charming. " Asha gave tiered back at Bunny.  
For a moment the Guardian of hope looked confused. Catching on, he ducked his head.  
" Well, what was saying ..." , he mumbled.   
" What I meant to say was, that it is something to be worried about. You're maybe not in pain and it seems that these things do nothing to hurt you, but it could become harmful someday. "  
" He's right, you know. " Tooth agreed.  
" It has never made any problems at all. " Asha said.   
As she said that, she didn't seem convincing at all.  
Maybe she didn't tell the whole truth, but the Guardians were pretty sure she wouldn't admit it to them anyway right now.  
" Well, as they say: better safe than fucking sorry. " Bunny said to her.  
" I'm sure there was no cursing in this saying." Tooth commented silently.  
Bunny shrugged.  
" Alright, now you know why I'm not suitable as a guardian. " Asha said.  
" What do you mean?   
Do you really think little black stripes make you unworthy of being a Guardian? " North asked slightly perplexed.  
" Well, North... ", Asha answered, like she explained something to a child.  
"I have darkness inside of me, quite literally. That can't be right for someone with the responsibility to protect the lights of the children.  
That doesn't go well together. "  
" Does the man in the moon know you are having this? " North asked and made a gesture to her chest.  
" Well, yes he does. He ... "  
North interrupted her, " Then all is well. MiM knows what he is doing. Not to worry. " he smiled.  
" He knows about it and ... " she started again, but North waved it off.  
" Nothing to worry about. "  
" Hey mate, let her talk.   
She couldn't even finish that sentence. " Bunny said annoyed.  
North ducked his head and glared at him.  
" Finally! Thank you. " Asha said slightly frustrated.  
" So... The man in the moon knows about the lines and he tried to remove them, but he couldn't. "  
" What? " North, Jack, and Bunny gasped unison, Tooth   
put her hand over her mouth and Sandy stared with wide eyes.  
" Years ago, when I first arrived, the man in the moon tried to remove the rift, but he could not do it. Neither of us has any idea why," she said as a matter of fact.  
" He too doesn't know what it really is or how I got it and he seemed to be upset about it. Of course, I don't know him well enough to be sure. "  
The was a long moment of silence.  
" Oh my...", said Tooth.  
" Look, guys, there is nothing that can be done about it. ", Asha shrugged.  
" Or..., ", North said slowly and grinned, " ... it could be possible that the fact Manny made you a Guardian mean it's not as bad as you think. " he mused and gestured again to the rift.  
"I believe one hundred percent that MiM wouldn't do anything that could hurt anyone especially the children. ", he said and put her hands on her hips and nodded.  
" Well, I suppose you're right.   
He wouldn't do something like that. He cares about the children and us. " Tooth agreed with him.  
Jack balanced on top of this rod.  
" I see what's happening here.   
You guys think that Asha should join us, regardless of her doubts, because Manny knows about the possible threat, but choose her either way.   
That means he believes it is ok, right? "   
" Yes, that us what I was thinking. ", North said proudly.  
" Let me guess, you are not willing to take no for an answer? " Jack continues.  
" That's right! ", North announced.  
Jack looked at Asha.   
The woman glared back at him.   
He could see in her eyes that she knew what was coming.  
" Well, Asha... You could at least give it a try. If everything turned out good, you stay, if not ... you can leave. What do you think? ", Jack asked.  
Asha sighed in defeat.   
She knew very well that this would be complicated.   
She had no experience with the things the Guardians were doing, she had no contact with children over a very long time. Maybe even decades.   
She didn't had a clue how she could be of use for them.  
She was aware that the Guardians, mostly North and Tooth, wouldn't let go of this.   
She knew that, while she was free to refuse, there was no way out.  
" All right. ", she said. " I'm joining your club, on probation. I warn you now, I will probably not be of much use to you."  
" Balderdash! ", North said loudly.   
" We all have talents, strengths, powers, and skills that are of use for our calling.   
You too," he shouted happily.  
" I can not understand how you can be so sure. ", Asha sighed and shook her head.  
" It's because I believe in us.   
I've seen us Guardians do so many things that should be impossible, but we did them.   
And we never give up, never give up on the children or each other.   
As long as one of us is standing and capable of fighting, we find a way to help the children of this world and protect them.   
I know that you have doubts.   
We all had them as we began our journey as Guardians, but believe me when I say that you will see how it really is.   
You will grow, you will find your center and you will see that your doubts were completely unfounded. " North said with so much pride in his voice that he seems to glow.  
Asha looked at him with a mixture of amazement and disbelief.  
" Well ... ", it seemed that she was lost for words.   
There was an awkward silence, while Asha was thinking about what to say.  
She sighed and said, " Maybe you're right. Maybe I can do something, anything, to help you.   
Ok, yes. I'll give it a try. "   
" Marvelous. That's grat. " Tooth cheered.   
" It is indeed," said North smiling and patted her on the shoulder.  
Jack happily nodded and Sand held both thumbs up.  
" Great ..." said Bunny monotonously.  
' Oh, gods and goddesses, please don't let this become a disaster.  
I couldn't bear it! ', was what he thought internally.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading the new chapter. I'll try to get the next one out in time, but I can't make promises. Ich wish you all a very nice day


	5. A Party for six

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Guardians have a celebration and talk about their strategy against the danger.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just realized that it will take me a while to write this story the way I had intended. It will be a long story. I do my best to load a chapter up at least once a month.

North was ecstatic and very optimistic. He beamed at the other guardian and rubbed his hands together in excitement.  
He was a man of action if nothing more.  
" Now, let's get to the pole and celebrate. We will have music, and food, and drinks, and you ... ", he pointed at Asha, "... You will take the oath and become an official guardian. "  
" Oh no, no, no. Wait a minute right there. " Asha said with a horrified expression on her face.  
'" I can't take an oath! We just agreed that I will > give it a try <.   
Sorry big guy, but I don't do such committed relationships. I'm seeing myself as a potential danger as long as somehow, by some miracle, someone convince me otherwise. "  
North looked at her intently.  
" You are a very stubborn person, aren't you? " he said.  
" No surprises here, mate. " Bunny mumbled under his breath and Asha glared at him dismissively.  
" Tell you what ..., " the female spirit said, " I take something like a trial period. If everything is good and well I'll take your oath. If everything goes down the abyss, I'm out of your hair as quickly as a rabbit runs from a hunting dog. " she said, satisfied with her hit on Bunny.  
The Guardian of hope rolled his eyes at her. It was very obvious that the girl didn't believe her own words.  
She only said it for the sake of peace.  
" We never ever had such thing like a > trial period <. " North disagreed saying the words in such manner like they were a bunch of dirty underwear.  
Asha smiled at him wickedly.  
" There is always a first time for everything. We're trying new and exciting stuff here. Isn't that a wonderful thing to do? " she said stretching the > wonder < extra-long out.   
Jack grind behind North back and turned around so that Santa Claus couldn't see it.  
The spirit of Christmas and wonder looked slightly confused but cached up quickly.  
" I'm seeing what you are doing there.  
Alright, let's agree on this   
> new and wondrous thing < ." he said defeated.  
" Alright. " Jack slipped quickly into the conversation. He wanted this back and forth to end already.  
" It's settled. Let's go and do a   
> not-sworn-in-new-guardian < party. "  
North, Bunny, and Asha shrugged in agreement, and the other guardian sigh in relief.   
They all made their way to the pole in the sled, except Bunny, who still preferred his tunnels.

Shortly after their arrival, the place was in a riot. Elfs and Yetis run around to make party preparations as fast as they could.  
" I'm sorry there were no preparations already but we didn't know if we find you today. We had no clue about your whereabouts. " North proclaimed. He had just yelled loudly at his employees and kept the volume up.  
Asha flinched and said, " Please, you don't need to make a big deal out of this. If you really want to celebrate, let's toast on it with something and get over with it. "   
Bunny leaned over to her and said quietly, " They make a pretty neat pie and stuff like this. If you like sugar, and I know you do, you don't want to skip the celebration. "   
Asha gave him a suspicious look.  
" This Elfs make pies? " she asked, looking at the tiny people running around in pure confusion, bumping into each other frequently.  
Bunny laughed at that.  
" No! Oh gods, no. The Yetis make them. They are pretty good actually. You can trust me on this. I am the master of all things sugary and delicious. " he grinned and pumped his chest up proud.  
Asha had a softer but still suspicious look on her face.   
She and the Easter Bunny had always a strange and complicated relationship with each other.  
Every time they were confronted with each other they entered in a snarky battle of words and try to outwit the other.   
If she was honest with herself she had to admit that she had no clue why. Their first meeting, a long time ago, had been really weird. She didn't know what went wrong but since then they were on odd terms.  
It'd wasn't like she didn't like him but he was always peculiar to her.  
Even today he had been s little unfriendly.  
Well, until now.  
Out of her belly, she decided to make an attempt for a new start and said nicely " Yes, I heard you make delicious chocolate. "  
She underlined her words with a smile.  
" Is that what people say about me? "   
As if he didn't know that...  
" Well, they are right. " Bunny smiled smugly.  
" I bet. " Asha answered with an internal eye-roll.  
" Do they make good Carrot Cake? " she asked with a little sidelong glance.  
Bunny looked back at her and grinned again.  
" I'm not just only about the carrots, Honey, " he said.   
A series of micro-expressions flashed over his face. It was quick but Asha could make out a few of them.  
Fright, embarrassment, consideration, and last a distracting smile.  
" I meant ' I like honey too '," he said.  
Asha looked at him curios but in order to keep the peace, she said just " Sure. "  
They were interrupted by Tooth who was whirring towards them.  
" I guess the Yetis have finished their preparations. I hope nobody got hurt," she said with worry in her voice.  
In the background, two Elfs with plates crashed into each other.  
One of them was landing with great force on his buttocks but managed to hold the plate. The other had no such luck. He dropped the tablet and looked perplexed as a bunch of cookies rolled all over the place.  
In a rush, he was running to collect them again.  
" Oh goodness! " Tooth said dismayed.  
Bunny and Asha looked at each other and then back at the running Elf.   
" Well, at least, it's isn't looking like they got hurt. " Asha said with a shallow sigh.  
" Yeah ... " Bunny agreed, his gaze still on the Elf that was now munching on the cookies he collected from the floor.  
" Let's go eat, " he said slowly.  
" The food from the table. The one served by some Yetis. Let's eat that. "  
It seemed like he had lost the thread for the moment.  
The other two agreed and all of the guardians settled around the big table.  
North made a toast to their newest member and opened the celebration.  
They eat and chatted lightly.

After a while the conversation hatted to more serious matters.  
Tooth turned to Asha and said softly.  
" I know this all is extremely new to you and I am sure it is difficult to process all in such a short time but there is something we have to ask you. "  
The new guardian looked slightly curious at her.  
" Yes? " she asked carefully.  
" It is just... You know, normally if the Man in the Moon is choosing a new guardian, something bad is going to happen. It has never been the case that he chose someone without danger on the horizon. " the Tooth Fairy mumbled worriedly.  
An entered silence followed her words.  
Asha sighed.  
" I had a feeling it would be like this. So, what's the threat? It can't be too serious if we just have a party instead of running off to the battlefield. "  
" Yeah, well... " Jack rubbed his neck.  
" Now we come to the core of the problem... We don't know what the threat is jet," he said flat.  
Asha looked at him with wide eyes waiting for the punchline.  
When it not came she asked in disbelieve, " Are you serious? "   
The other guardian looked at each other.  
" Deadly serious. " Bunny answered finally.  
" That's fricking great. " Asha said a little frustrated.  
" Actually, we had hoped that you maybe have an idea. " Tooth looked at her worried.  
" That would be definitely a No.   
I have absolutely no clue. " Asha shrugged.  
" Okay. " Jack said and tried to sound confident.  
" Let's brainstorming. We have two options: find a lead or wait until something happens. "  
" Not a fan of option two, mate. " Bunny looked resigned.  
" Well, me neither. " Jack confirmed.  
" How is this going normally? Do you hear a big bang and run into action? " Asha asked.  
" Not so much. Normally, we see signs of a threat. Really unhappy and frighten Children, decline of belief or removal of powers for example. " Bunny explained.  
" And have you experienced some of this signs? "  
Bunny sighed deeply.   
" Not me, Foxglove. "  
" I didn't. " North admitted.  
" Me neither. " Jack said too.  
Tooth and Sandy both shook their heads.  
" Well, I can't really say that I would have noticed something like this.   
I mean, I have no believers, my powers didn't decline and Kids don't come to the lake where I live. "  
They all were in their own heads for a moment.  
None of them had experienced something out of the ordinary but there had to be a reason for The Man in the Moons actions.  
" Well, what do we now? Is there some kind of protocol for situations like this? " Asha asked.  
" There isn't ... " Tooth answered sadly.  
" There has to be something we can do. " Jack said and Bunny glared at him.  
" We're open for any ideas you may have, dude. "   
Asha looked thoughtful. This was so far from an ideal situation.   
Only this morning she had talked to a friend of her named Lalita. She was a Naga that came sometimes to her lake to sun herself. They often chatted together and Lalita got Asha up to date with all kinds of gossip.  
If her friend had told her this morning that she would be sitting at the North Pole and talking about sn evil danger that was coming for the children of the world merely a few hours later, she would have accused the Naga of being ridiculous.  
It took this thought to form an idea.  
" Maybe it's a waste of time but we could ask around. There so many other spirits out there. I live pretty isolated, but there are many that see and hear much. It could be possible that they have something to say about all this. "  
The other guardian looked at her.  
" You know, that's actually a pretty good plan. " Jack said delightedly.  
" Yeah. And it's the only one we got. " Bunny agreed.   
" Excellent! " North proclaimed loudly.  
" Now we will eat and first tomorrow we are going to speak to other spirits. We can do this! "

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading this chapter.  
> I know it's a little short but it got a little difficult to get the ball rolling.
> 
> I will mix the book and movie canon a bit together in the future and bend it for my advantages. Be alarmed ;)


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